Cleaner and scalder.



1. c. McmfYRE. CLEANER AND SCALDER. APPLICATION FILED DEC. II, 1914-Patented Apr. 10, 1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I J. C. McINTYRE. CLEANER AND- SCALDER. APPLICATION FILED05c. 11. 1914:

Patented Apr. 10, 1917 4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

J. C. MclNTYRE.

CLEANER AND SCALDER. APPLICA'HON FILED DEC. II. 1914.

mmwm Patented Apr\1(),1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

J. C. McINTYRE.

CLEANER AND SCALDER.

APPLICATION FILED nzc. 11. 1914.

Patented Apr. 10, 1917.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

W Additional objects an JOHN c; munv'rrnn, or noornsron, ILLINOIS,nssrenon TO srimeun ammo 101w comrm, or onrcneo, ILLINOIS, aconrom'rronor ILLINOIS.

I I 1,22%,Ufl8.

I CLEANER Arm SCALDER.

Specificati rs Patent. Pat t A to, 1917,

. Application filed December. 11,1214; Serial No, 876,M8.

To allwlwm it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN C. Mclln'rrnn, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hoopeston, in the county of Vermilion and t Stateof'lllinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Cleaners andScalders, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exactdescription, reference-being had to theaccompanying drawing, forming ina part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in cleaners and scalders for fruitsand vegetables and particularly to that class of clean- "ers andscalders in which steam and water it are discharged upon the fruit orvegetable to insure more thorough treatment than is obtainable by a meresubmersion in a washing or scalding medium. J

Certain fruits and vegetables have one portion of their surface moreinclined to collect dirt and so more diflicult to clean than otherportions. For example, in the case of tomatoes, the surface issubstantially smooth and rounded except adjacent the stem.

ht There is found a depression where dirt,

. molds and bacteria collect. Furthermore,

- the skin of tomatoes is firmly attached to the spot at the .bud enddirectly opposite the stem end and in order to facilitate peeling it simportant that thorough treatment by the scalding medium be directed tothis spot as.

- well. In scalders and cleaners asheretoiore lmown it has-been'foundthat the fruit or' vegetables will be subjected to the cleaning lthtstem and bud ends. q

It is one of theob ectsof my invention to provide means forsubjec'iting;v org.. vegetables to cleaning and scalding sprays. suchthat all portions of such fruit or. vegetables, and particularlythe'p'ortions around the stem and bud ends, will be presentedto thesprays in. a uniform manner during the greater portion of their travelthrough the sprays. I

It is a further object of my invention to "provide means for obtaining auniform attrition action on the surface of the fruit or vegetable by thecarryin mechanism. 1 V advantages .of my I cation andillustrated in theaccompanying invention;

"taken-on the line 22 of Fig. 1, looln'ng in "portionof Fig. 3; Y

tion of-the same (enlarged) steam su ply pipe12, andthose of the third g'groupil -'with .,a supplypipe. 1 1. On the 4 under sides of all thepipes of these groups i. a1'e'Iopenings 15 such that when water or'steam]v or other fluid is forced". throughthe I "-pipes it will" escapein the form of ets or sprays as illustrated in'Fig. '2. Canvascurtainsor aprons 15 separate the parts ofthe treatment of the fru'tor vegetableatithe- I ing description taken in-connection with the appended claims.

I have described in the following specifi- 60 drawings a cleaner andscalder constructed in accordance with my invention, it being understoodthat numerous changes may be made in the form, construction andarrarigef ment of the parts without departing from the spirit ofmyinvention or exceeding the scope of the appended claims, the form of ythe invention herein disclosed being merely one preferred embodimentthereof.

In the drawings: v Figure 1 is a plan view of a cleaner and scalderconstructed in acoordnace with my Fig. 2 is across sectlonal view of thesame the direction ofthe arrows;

Fig 3 is a view of the same in side elevation;f I -Fig. 4 is a view inend elevation showing' a Fig. 5 is a detail-showing in-horizontal crosssection one of the rollers; and

, Fig, 6 is adetail showing a transverse sec- Referring to the drawings,supported by suitable brackets on a base 7 is a hood 8 inclosingthreegroups of pipes. The-pipes'of group 9' are connected by-manifolds"to a .Inain; supply pipe 10, those' of the next. andscalding media in avariety of [positions ffwith the result that the most efiectivejelean.and scaldinglprocess is not, always di group 11, are similarlyconnected, with a chamber-,formedgbythehood, occupied by 106Passing'beneathhis hood is an endless conveyer'eomprising a plurality oftransverse rolls 16 carried by chains 17 traveling over pairs ofsprocket 'wheels 18 and 19. The sprockets 18 are mounted on a shaft 20journaled in bearing brackets 21 secured to the base 7, and having atone end a. bevel gear 22 meshing with a pinion 23- on a shaft 24 onwhich are fast and loose pulleys'25.

Sprockets 19 which are idlers are'mounted 55 At the same time the on ashaft 26 journaled in blocks 27 arranged to slide back and forth intake-up brackets 28, threaded pins 29 on the blocks engagrected upwardwater falls onto an inclined drain 32 from Adjacent the rolls tionedsubstantially which it can be carried away as desired.

To cause the rolls 16 to be carried by the conveyer chains 17, thecentral shaft 33 of each roll has pin-like ends 34 which are looselysuch intervals as to bring the rolls in close but not contiguousproximity to one another. v

Means are also provided to cause the rolls to rotate on their own oftheir travel. The ends of the rolls, just inside the pins 34 have theform of flanged wheels 35 and these wheels are arranged to travel ontracks 36 supported by brackets 37. These tracks extend from a pointjust outside the feeding end of the machine to a point where the chainbegins to turn down- 1 ward over-the sprocket and here they are alinedwith semi-circular roll guides 38.

at this point and posiparallel with their axes is a discharge conveyer39 driven in any suitable manner.

Each rbll comprises the shaft 33 and end wheels 35 before mentioned, acentral hub portion 40 and the body portion 41. This latter is in theform of a cylindrical sheet of metal held between the two end flangesand bent into a number of ridges 42 parallel with the axis so that theroll has a roughened or corrugated appearance.

In operation, tomatoes being taken, for example, as the articles to becleaned and scalded, they are fed to. the conveyer at the left of thehood 8 (Figs. 1 and 2). Power being applied to pulley 25 the conveyerchains will be revolved over the sprockets by means of the operatingconnection com rising shaft 24, pinion 23, gear 22 and sha 20. rollsthat are passing the sprays will rotate on their own axes as beforedescribed. As the tomato'falls on the rolls, owing to the constructionof the latter and the usual elliptical shape, more or less flattened atthe stem and bud ends, of the tomato, the latter will take a positionbetween two. rolls and the movement of the rolls revolves the tomatosothat it presents its 'stem end and its bud end to the sprays at rolledover and over between the rolls.

tomato.

inserted in the chains (Fig. 4) at axes during a portion eachrevolution. As the rolls move along and rotate on their-own axes thetomatoes are As they pass under the first group of pipes (group 9) theyare subjected to sprays of water therefrom. Passing the canvas curtain15 they enter the scalding chamber and receive jets of steam from aboveand below. After passing the second canvas curtain sprays of cold waterfrom group 13 are discharged upon them. This latter causes cracking ofthe skin, facilitates )eeling and also serves as a final washing 0 theFurther facilitation of peeling has been effected during all of thisoperation by the attrition action due to the tomatoes being turned overand over on the roughened rolls. As the rolls begin to pass downwardalong the end guide 38 the tomatoes are deposited onto the conveyer 39by which they are carried away or they may fall directly into suitablereceptacles.

It will be apparent that this operation is continuous and owing to thelength and number of the rolls a large number of tomatoes can be cleanedand scalded in a short time. Furthermore, because of the position takenby the tomatoes on account of the elliptical shape of the latter and theconstruction of the rolls this treatment is extremely thorough andeffective.

Although this description of the operation deals with tomatoes it is tobe understood that tomatoes are taken merely as an example, and that theinvention is not to be considered as restricted to the treatment of thatparticular vegetable.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is 1. In an apparatus for treating fruits andvegetables, the combination with means for delivering a plurality ofjets of cleansing fluid, of an endless conveyer for carry- I ing thefruit,or vegetables through the jets, and means whereby the individualfruit or vegetable is caused to have its stem and bud ends alternatelypresented to the direct action of said jets during its travel.

. 2. In an apparatus for treating fruits and vegetables, the combinationwith means for delivering fluid, of an endless conveyer for carrying thefruit or vegetables through said jets,

, and means whereby the individual fruit or a plurality of jets ofcleansing.

trition action is caused on the skin of the individual fruit orvegetable.

4c. In an apparatus for treating fruits and vegetables, the combinationwith means for delivering a plurality of jets of softening fluid, of anendless conveyer for carrying the fruitand vegetables through thesprays, said conveyer being provided with means for causing theindividual fruit or vegetable to revolve as it passes through the jetsto present its stem and bud ends alternately to the direct action ofsaid .jets, said conveyer being also provided with means serving tocause an attrition on the skin of the fruit or vegetable.

5. In an apparatus for treating fruits and vegetables, the combinationwith means for delivering a plurality of jets of cleansing fluid, of anendless conveyer, a plurality of substantially parallel horizontal rollscar ried by said conveyer, and meansrwhereby said rolls are caused torotate on their own axes during a portion of their travel, said jetsbeing directed in planes substantially perpendicular to the axis of saidrolls.

6. In an apparatus for treating fruits and vegetables, the combinationwith means for delivering a plurality of jets of cleansing fluid, of anendless conveyer, aplurality of substantially parallel horizontal rollshaving a roughened surface carried by said 0011- veyer, and meanswhereby said rolls are caused to rotate on their own axes during aportion of their travel, said jets being directed in planessubstantially perpendicular to the axis of said rolls.

'jetsbeing directed in planes substantially perpendicular to the axis ofsaid rolls.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presenceof two witnesses.

JOHX C. MoINTYRE.

Witnesses:

JoHx .B. WALLBRIDGE, A. M. Hoxn-YwELL.

